<html class="apple-mail-supports-explicit-dark-mode"><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size: 34px;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Things My Grandmother Said</span></span><div><span style="font-size: 34px;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Turmeric can heal anything</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but a broken heart.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve got some Benadryl I bet could shush</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">that dog of yours. Sounds fun</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but what does it pay. You can’t shoot</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">the spots without shooting the leopard.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">If dressmaker’s dummies could cook,</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">we’d all be old maids.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Poetry? You’re grinding water</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">with a pestle of ice,</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but when you’ve never thirsted a day</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">in your life, I guess</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">you can play. I know plenty</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">of family history, but don’t ask me</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">where green eyes got into the bloodline.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">India invented recycling, we called it karma,</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but trash now is trash later.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">I wasn’t crying, I was dicing onions</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">in a memory in Ahmedabad.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Every time I stand up</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">there’s Rice Krispies in my knees.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This girl is perfect for you, I know</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">her aunt. Read that to me at</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">my funeral, boy, right now my show is on.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">I got to be this old by nibbling a little</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">raw ginger every morning.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Ambition’s a sinkhole that deepens</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">the more you dump in it,</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but that doesn’t mean don’t get a job.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">In the old days, families were so big,</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">counting nephews felt like counting stars.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Every kite forgets its string.</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sure, the Ganga is holy</span><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">but who told you to drink from it?</span><br><br><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>- Amit Majmudar</span></span></div></div></body></html>